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Molecular basis of behavioral recovery following spinal cord decompression: an immunocytochemical study
1Department of Orthopedic Surgery, 2nd Hospital of Medical School of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, PR China.
Objectives:
To examine whether the expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), a marker for cholinergic neurons, and growth-associated protein (GAP-43), a marker for synaptogenesis, occurs differently following compression vs. decompression of spinal cord, and whether the reactions have any relationship with the time course of behavioral recovery.
Methods:
A spinal cord compression model was studied quantitatively with an immunohistochemical method. The behavioral recovery of the rat was assessed by combined behavior score (CBS).
Results:
The rebound in the ChAT-positive cell ratio was higher in decompressed cord than in compressed one. The time course of the change in the ChAT-positive cell ratio coincided with the recovery of CBS in the two models. Increased GAP-43 expression was found in the region of injured cord in the two models. Increased GAP-43 expression was partially parallel to the recovery of CBS, both in the decompression and continuous compression groups.
Conclusions:
The results indicate that there are ChAT reversible neurons in both the compressed and decompressed cord, the number of which is closely related to the recovery of behavior following cord injury. Synaptogenesis plays a limited role in behavior recovery.
